Primary Bank, which celebrated its grand opening Friday as the first new New Hampshire bank in seven years, expects to build three additional branches and reach at least $300 million in assets in the...

Local police seeking donations to help New York hurricane victims

By Jason SchreiberUnion Leader Correspondent

Grassroots efforts are under way in New Hampshire to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy while teams of fire and rescue personnel from around the state are gearing up to respond to coastal areas of New Jersey ravaged by last week's epic storm.

The New Hampshire Chiefs of Police Secretaries Association is scrambling to collect donations of items to be delivered to neighborhoods on New York's Staten Island, where residents lost everything in the massive storm.

The collection is being spearheaded by Jessica Miehle, the chief's administrative assistant at the North Hampton Police Department, whose family in Staten Island is among the many struggling in the wake of the disaster.

Anyone who would like to donate can drop items off at police departments in Bristol, Fremont, New Hampton, North Hampton and Rochester through tomorrow (Friday). The items are expected to be brought to Staten Island on Saturday morning.

The Raymond Area Rotary Club is also holding its own hurricane relief drive and will be collecting items until Nov. 13 at the Epping and Raymond fire departments. For more information and a list of items needed, visit the rotary's website, www.raymondarearotary.org.

Meanwhile, the New Jersey Emergency Management recently sent a request to an interstate mutual aid network seeking medical teams and ambulances to assist in the wake of Sandy. As many as 20 ambulances with teams of EMTs and paramedics from around New Hampshire have agreed to travel to the areas affected, said Dave Danielson, public information officer for the New Hampshire Division of Fire Standards and Training and Emergency Medical Services.

Danielson said New Jersey requested four so-called ';strike teams.'; Each team includes four basic life support ambulances with two EMTs and one advanced life support ambulance with one EMT and paramedic.

The teams are waiting to hear back from New Jersey officials on whether they will be needed.